European Political Science Review· 2026Q1
Not my democracy: conceptions, discontent, and participation in Europe
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- 2026year
Short summary
Citizens' specific conceptions of democracy, not just their overall support, significantly influence their satisfaction with democracy and subsequent political participation.
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Key points
- Citizens' specific understandings of democracy (UoD) influence their satisfaction with democracy (SwD).
- Satisfaction with democracy (SwD) mediates the effect of UoD on unconventional political participation (UPP).
- The study analyzed data from almost 60,000 respondents across 31 European countries using ESS Round 10 data.
- Democratic expectations, not just general support, are key to understanding political engagement.
AI-generated from the title and abstract; the full text is not read.
Abstract
Abstract Citizens differ not only in how strongly they support democracy, but also in what they expect democracy to be. Yet we know less about whether these democratic expectations shape satisfaction with democracy (SwD) and, through it, political participation (PP) in established European democracies. We first develop a mechanism linking citizens’ prioritized understandings of democracy (UoD) to SwD and unconventional political participation (UPP). Satisfaction with democracy is treated as an indicator of perceived congruence between citizens’ democratic ideals and how democracy works in practice. Second, we test this mechanism systematically in Europe using ESS Round 10 data, including almost 60,000 respondents in 31 countries. We find that (a) citizens’ conceptions of democracy affect SwD and (b) that SwD is a mediator for the impact UoD have on UPP.
The authors' abstract, as published at the source. European Political Science Review, 2026 · DOI ↗
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Field: Communication
CommunicationSocial Sciences